Field
Certain embodiments may generally relate to beam scanning at a millimeter wave (mmWave) beamforming transmitter. For example, some embodiments may provide a solution on how to obtain the full channel knowledge for radio frequency (RF) beamforming at a mmWave beamforming transmitter.
Description of the Related Art
A global bandwidth shortage facing wireless carriers has motivated the consideration of the underutilized millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency spectrum for future broadband cellular communication networks. mmWave (or extremely high frequency) generally refers to the frequency range between 30 and 300 gigahertz (GHz). This is the highest radio frequency band in practical use today. Radio waves in this band have wavelengths from ten to one millimeter, giving it the name millimeter band or millimeter wave.
The amount of wireless data might increase one thousand fold over the next ten years. Essential elements in solving this challenge include obtaining more spectrum, having smaller cell sizes, and using improved technologies enabling more bits/s/Hz. An important element in obtaining more spectrum is to move to higher frequencies, above 6 GHz. For fifth generation wireless systems (5G), an access architecture for deployment of cellular radio equipment employing mmWave radio spectrum has been proposed. In addition to extending cellular service into the mmWave band, dynamic spectrum access is an important technique to improve spectrum utilization.